Although the culture of the fig for its edible fruit is a comparatively modern development, the tree was, through countless millennia, gradually evolving from a wild plant to a cultivated fruit tree. During this long period there arose numerous legends concerning the origin, usefulness, and special properties of the fig tree and its fruit, many of which have been preserved for us in ancient and even in modern literature. And though we smile indulgently at the superstitions of our early ancestors, we may find in these myths an interesting background for modern scientific and practical data.